Date : 24 Dec 2020

Dear All,
Hari Om!

Pujya Swami Sundarananda of Gangotri, the last living direct disciple of Param Pujya Swami Tapovanji Maharaj, attained Mahasamadhi in Dehradun last night.

🕉️ He will rest permanently at Tapovan Kuti in Gangotri, where he used to reside, amidst the glorious Himalayas he adored and beside his beloved Mother Ganga.

Born in April 1926 near Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, Swami Sundarananda is famous as the Himalayan photographer, who clicked lakhs of photographs capturing the grandeur of the Himalayas he loved to trek across.

On his own admission, he had lost count of the number of times he had trekked to Gomukh and Tapovan.

🪔 He climbed over 20 peaks above the height of 21,000 feet. An authority on Himalayan terrain, he showed the way to the Indian Army during the war.

Some of his prized photographs capturing the pristine beauty of his beloved Himalayas, are featured in his book, ‘Himalayas – Through the Lens of a Sadhu’. The book carries an endorsement by Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former Prime Minister of India.

🌻 A nature lover and keen environmentalist, Swami Sundarananda has worked to spread awareness of the deteriorating ecological conditions in the mountains over the last several years, with special focus on the source of Mother Ganga.

🕉️ Our homage and reverential pranams to Swami Sundarananda, the loving devotee of Param Pujya Swami Tapovanji Maharaj.

At His Feet,
Swami Swaroopananda